Method and arrangement for heating buildings having an infrared heating system

ABSTRACT

A method and a configuration for heating buildings has an infrared heating system containing a radiant tube disposed in a first building, particularly in a hall, to which a gas heated by a furnace is supplied at a first end. A second end of the radiant tube is in a flow connection with a heat exchanger that is subjected to the heated gas after the gas leaves the radiant tube. A radiator or tap water dispenser is disposed in a second building that is connected to the heat exchanger via lines in order to emit the thermal energy absorbed by the heat exchanger in the second building in the form of convection heat or heated tap water.

The invention relates to a method and an arrangement for heating buildings using an infrared heating system as claimed in the preamble of claims 1 and 10.

Infrared heating systems of this type have been distributed by the applicant for a long time and comprise a generally horizontally suspended housing which is open at the bottom and which accommodates a radiant tube to which heated air is supplied by a burner, in particular a gas burner, and a blower. Owing to the temperature, which is thus generated, of the generally black outer face of the radiant tube in the range from 300° C. to 750° C., said radiant tube radiates infrared radiation in the manner of a black body, and this infrared radiation results in a direct heating of the environment below the radiant tube. In contrast with conventional building heating systems which use heating bodies such as radiators, it is advantageous here that, in a building, only the surfaces of people, animals and objects are heated by means of the infrared radiation rather than the air volume inside the building, with the result that the infrared heating systems described operate relatively economically and are therefore used with preference when heating halls.

The known infrared heating systems of the type mentioned above involve the problem that the residual heat in the heated gas is utilized only insufficiently after it leaves the radiant tube, and as a result the overall efficiency of the described infrared heating systems decreases.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method and an arrangement, by means of which it is possible to improve the overall efficiency when heating buildings using an infrared heating system.

This object is achieved according to the invention by way of the features of claims 1 and 10.

According to the invention, a method for heating buildings using an infrared heating system having a radiant tube in a first building, especially a hall, to which radiant tube a gas which is heated by a burner is supplied at a first end, is distinguished in that the second end of the radiant tube is in fluid communication with a heat exchanger, to which the heated gas is supplied after it leaves the radiant tube, or through which said gas preferably flows, and which is preferably connected to a buffer storage tank for the coolant via a first coolant supply and return line.

Moreover, in a second building, for example a residential building or a thermally insulated partial region of the first building, a heating body or an industrial water dispenser is arranged, which is in fluid communication with the buffer storage tank in order to give off the thermal energy of the coolant—preferably water—in the second building in the form of heat of convection or of heated industrial water. Where the term industrial water is mentioned, it is also meant to encompass drinking water or water used, for example, in swimming pools as pool water.

The heating body is, for example, a known radiator through which hot water which is preferably stored in the buffer storage tank flows; however, it can also be a plate-type ceiling heater through which hot water flows.

The buffer storage tank is preferably configured as a known stratified tank.

Although use of a buffer storage tank is advantageous with respect to flexibility when heating the second building, it also possible, however, to connect the heating body or the hot water dispenser directly to the heat exchanger. In this case, the amount of thermal energy which is supplied to the heating body and/or the industrial water dispenser can be varied, for example, via a bypass line (mentioned further below) in conjunction with a diverter for the heated gas, which is arranged between the heat exchanger and the bypass line upstream thereof in the region of the line branching. One conceivable application example for this is the heating of the pool water in an indoor swimming pool which is located next to a conventional gymnasium, where heating takes place in an energy-saving manner via the infrared heating systems which are suspended, for example, in the gymnasium in the region of the ceiling and were mentioned at the outset.

The invention offers the advantage that the residual heat remaining in the heated gas after it has flown through the radiant tube is transferred, via the heat exchanger and the coolant, into the buffer storage tank in which said residual heat is available for heating a neighboring residential building, a separate area in the first building or else for heating industrial water. If the coolant or the storage medium is water, the temperature in the buffer storage tank can be, for example, 60 to 80° C.

According to another embodiment of the method according to the invention, the radiant tube is assigned a blower which conveys the heated gas through the heat exchanger and out of the radiant tube preferably by way of negative pressure. The resulting advantage is that the heat exchanger, at a given size, can be provided with a large number of through passages for the heated gas—also referred to below as exhaust gas—in order to increase the thermally active surface area, without the increased flow resistance impacting disadvantageously on the generation of the hot gas in the burner.

It is particularly advantageous here if the blower is arranged upstream of the heat exchanger since in this case the temperature of the exhaust gas can be reduced to such an extent that it condenses in the heat exchanger and thus the heat of condensation of the exhaust gas can also be used for heating the buffer storage tank.

According to another approach on which the invention is based, the second end of the radiant tube is connected to the blower via a supply line which is preferably thermally insulated with respect to the environment. The resulting advantage is here that the thermal losses due to convection can be further reduced in the first building, with the result that the ensuing additional thermal energy in the exhaust gas can likewise be used to heat the second building, which further increases the efficiency.

Similarly, the blower can likewise be arranged upstream of the radiant tube, preferably upstream of the burner.

If a throttle valve, which is arranged downstream of the blower and the heat exchanger, is used, it is advantageously possible to not only vary the volume flow of heated exhaust gas, but also to additionally regulate the condensation behavior of the exhaust gas in the heat exchanger, for which purpose, for example, a control and regulating device may be provided which alters the position of the throttle valve as a function of another throttle valve which is arranged upstream of the burner and/or of the rotational speed of the blower.

According to a further embodiment (already briefly mentioned above) of the method according to the invention, the heat exchanger is preferably assigned a bypass line, via which the heated gas can be guided past the heat exchanger so as to prevent the buffer storage tank from being damaged if the coolant or the buffer storage tank are overheated.

The storage medium in the buffer storage tank for the heat transferred by the coolant is preferably water, but can also be another medium. Similarly, the buffer storage tank may consist of a solid material, such as ceramics, metal, fireclay bricks or the like, which is heated by the cooling medium.

Although the above-described method can be used in conjunction with an infrared heating system which merely comprises a radiant tube, it is likewise possible, according to a further approach on which the invention is based, to use two or more infrared heating systems having corresponding radiant tubes for heating the first building or else other buildings which are connected to the heat exchanger via a common exhaust-gas manifold which is thermally insulated with respect to the environment preferably by a known insulation material.

The invention will be described below with reference to the drawing using a preferred embodiment.

In the drawing, FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of the essential components of the arrangement according to the invention for heating a first and a second building.

As shown in FIG. 1, an arrangement 1 according to the invention for carrying out the above-described method comprises an infrared heating system 4 arranged in a first building 2 a, which infrared heating system 4 has a radiant tube 6 to which a gas which is heated by a burner 10 is supplied at a first end 8. The heated gas is preferably the exhaust gas of the burner 10 which, in the preferred embodiment, is configured as a known gas burner.

As can further be seen in the illustration of FIG. 1, the arrangement 1 according to the invention further comprises a heat exchanger 12 through which the heated gas flows after it leaves the radiant tube 6 and which is in fluid communication, via a first coolant supply line 14 a and a first coolant return line 14 b, to a buffer storage tank 16 in which the coolant—preferably water—heats a heat storage medium, preferably also water, which is located in the buffer storage tank 16. Via a second supply line 18 a and a second return line 18 b, the buffer storage tank 16 is connected to a heating body 20 or to an industrial water dispenser (not shown) in order to give off in the second building 2 b the thermal energy stored in the buffer storage tank 16 in the form of heat of convection or in the form of heated industrial water. The second building 2 b is, for example, a residential building or a partial region of the first building 2 a, such as a recreation room in a gymnasium or in a factory hall or the like. However, the heating body 20, which can also take the form of a floor heating system, for example, can likewise be connected directly (not shown) to the heat exchanger 12 via the lines 14 a, 14 b and 18 a, 18 b, without the use of a buffer storage tank 16.

As can further be seen in the illustration of FIG. 1, the radiant tube 6 is assigned, via a supply line 22 which is configured in the shown embodiment of the arrangement 1 as a thermally insulated exhaust-gas manifold for three infrared heating systems 4 in total, a blower 24, which conveys the heated gas through the heat exchanger 12 and out of the radiant tubes 6.

According to a further approach on which the invention is based, the blower 24 is arranged upstream of the heat exchanger 12, with a throttle valve 26, which can be used to vary the amount of heated gas guided through the radiant tube 6, being arranged downstream of the blower 24.

The size of the heat exchanger 12, or its thermally active area, is preferably such that the temperature of the heated gas in the heat exchanger 12 drops, after it leaves the radiant tube 6, to a value at which the heated gas condenses in the heat exchanger 12.

Finally, the heat exchanger 12 can be assigned a bypass line (not shown in the figure), via which the heated gas can be guided past the heat exchanger 12 in order to avoid overheating of the buffer storage tank 16.

Although the coolant is preferably circulated in closed circuit through the heat exchanger 12 and the buffer storage tank 16 by means of a pump 28 (shown schematically)—which preferably also applies to the heating medium which circulates through the heating body 20 via the second supply line 18 a and return line 18 b—, it is alternatively also possible for the heat storage medium of the buffer storage tank 16 to be guided directly through the heat exchanger 12 or the heating body 20.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

1 arrangement according to the invention

2 a first building, such as a gymnasium or factory hall

4 infrared heating system

6 radiant tube

8 first end

10 burner

12 heat exchanger

14 a coolant supply line

14 b coolant return line

16 buffer storage tank

18 a second supply line

18 b second return line

20 heating body

22 supply line/manifold

24 blower

26 throttle valve

28 pump 

1-18. (canceled)
 19. A method for heating buildings using an infrared heating system containing a radiant tube in a first building, which comprises the steps of: supplying at a first end of the radiant tube a heated gas heated by a burner, a second end of the radiant tube is in fluid communication with a heat exchanger, to which the heated gas is supplied after it leaves the radiant tube; and providing, in a second building, one of a heating body and an industrial water dispenser connected to the heat exchanger via lines for giving off in the second building thermal energy received by the heat exchanger in a form of one of heat of convection and heat of heated industrial water.
 20. The method according to claim 19, which further comprises connecting the heat exchanger to a buffer storage tank for a coolant via a first coolant supply and return line, and thermal energy stored in the buffer storage tank is given off in the second building in a form of one of heat of convection and heat of heated industrial water.
 21. The method according to claim 19, which further comprises providing the radiant tube with a blower which conveys the heated gas through the heat exchanger and out of the radiant tube.
 22. The method according to claim 21, which further comprises disposing the blower upstream of the heat exchanger.
 23. The method according to claim 21, which further comprises connecting the second end of the radiant tube to the blower via a supply line which is thermally insulated with respect to the environment.
 24. The method according to claim 21, which further comprises disposing a throttle valve, which can be used to vary an amount of the heated gas guided through the radiant tube, downstream of the blower.
 25. The method according to claim 19, which further comprises selecting a size of the heat exchanger such that a temperature of the heated gas in the heat exchanger drops into a condensation range of the heated gas.
 26. The method according to claim 19, which further comprises providing the heat exchanger with a bypass line, via which the heated gas can be guided past the heat exchanger.
 27. The method according to claim 19, which further comprises connecting further radiant tubes of further infrared heating systems to the heat exchanger via a common, thermally insulated manifold for heating one of the first building and further buildings.
 28. The method according to claim 19, wherein the first building is a hall.
 29. A configuration, comprising: an infrared heating system disposed in a first building, said infrared heating system having a burner and a radiant tube with a first end to which a gas which is heated by said burner is supplied at said first end; a heat exchanger, to which the heated gas is supplied after it leaves said radiant tube; lines; and a heating unit selected from the group consisting of a heating body and an industrial water dispenser disposed in a second building, said heating unit being in fluid communication with said heat exchanger via said lines for giving off in the second building thermal energy received by said heat exchanger in a form of one of heat of convection and heat of heated industrial water.
 30. The configuration according to claim 29, further comprising a buffer storage tank; and wherein said heat exchanger is connected, via one of said lines being a first coolant supply and return line, to said buffer storage tank being connected to said heating unit via other ones of said lines for giving off in the second building the thermal energy stored in said buffer storage tank.
 31. The configuration according to claim 29, further comprising a blower associated with said radiant tube for conveying the heated gas through said heat exchanger and out of said radiant tube.
 32. The configuration according to claim 31, wherein said blower is disposed upstream of said heat exchanger.
 33. The configuration according to claim 31, further comprising a supply line and a second end of said radiant tube is connected to said blower via said supply line which is thermally insulated with respect to the environment.
 34. The configuration according to claim 31, further comprising a throttle valve for varying an amount of the heated gas guided through said radiant tube, said throttle valve disposed downstream of said blower.
 35. The configuration according to claim 29, wherein a size of said heat exchanger is such that a temperature of the heated gas in said heat exchanger is reduced into a condensation range of the heated gas.
 36. The configuration according to claim 29, wherein said heat exchanger has a bypass line, via which the heated gas can be guided past said heat exchanger.
 37. The configuration according to claim 29, further comprising: a common, thermally insulated manifold; and additional infrared heating systems having additional radiant tubes connected to said heat exchanger via said common, thermally insulated manifold for heating one of the first building and other buildings. 